Dendreon (Nasdaq:DNDN) Shares Soar on MEDCAC Panel Support

A positive review from the MEDCAC panel on the effectiveness of its cancer drug Provenge caused the share price of Dendreon (Nasdaq:DNDN) to soar by almost 7 percent by the close of Thursday's trading session.

This is good news for Dendreon, but the market will wait until March when Medicare officials will make a final decision on whether or not to cover the drug or not.

With most diagnosed with prostrate cancer being senior men, which Medicare primarily covers, it is essential to the success of the drug that is is approved by Medicare, or for the most part, it'll be irrelevant to the company.

Although some view this as a nod toward assured approval, that's not necessarily a certainty, as the drug costs $93,000 per each patient, while extending their live on average, only four months.

Even so, it does seem to at least increase the probability of the chance of it being approved, and that is a good step at this time.

Dendreon closed Thursday at $38.23, rising by $2.36, or 6.58 percent. Volume was over three times the 3-month daily average.